


Protectiveness

by MorgenRose0407



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Animal Attack, Animal Death, Animal Instincts, BAMF Ahsoka Tano, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Force Bond (Star Wars), Force Visions, Kidnapping, Light Angst, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-13
Updated: 2020-06-30
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:26:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23626873
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MorgenRose0407/pseuds/MorgenRose0407
Summary: There are many people who are protective of young Ahsoka Tano. Her Master, he Captain, her Grandmaster, just to name a few. But what none of them understand is just how protective she is of them.Chapter One - Anakin and the CaptorsChapter Two - Rex and the PredatorsChapter Three - Obi-wan and the PainChapter Four - Padmé and the ScourgeChapter Five - Barriss and the Reality of Command
Relationships: Anakin Skywalker & Ahsoka Tano, Barriss Offee & Ahsoka Tano, CT-7567 | Rex & Ahsoka Tano, Lux Bonteri/Ahsoka Tano, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Ahsoka Tano, Padmé Amidala & Ahsoka Tano, Padmé Amidala/Anakin Skywalker
Comments: 35
Kudos: 338





	1. Anakin and the Captors

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Anakin should be quiet with a blaster to his head, and Ahsoka is sick of being captured.

Whenever the Council sent them on a mission that they describe as “simple,” they’re really sending them on a mission that they had no faith in anyone else finishing simply because the Force seemed to put luck on the side of Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano.

Everything started fine enough. Having come to the usually calm planet Drall in search of answers for a rumored civil disturbance, the duo landed and found that the people themselves were begging for help. While intelligence had informed them that there was a power struggle on the planet, it didn’t describe just how badly it had been for the common folk. They were suffering now, with their newly appointed Governor rationing out imports less and less to those who needed it and imposing stronger sanctions and laws that were beginning to violate basic rights. Even when meeting with a new group to discuss what was happening, part of a group they had only talked to moments before were being arrested.

“We can’t expose ourselves just yet.” Anakin had informed his Padawan when she all but leapt to go stop the Drall police force from dragging a Human woman by the hair.

“We usually don’t do the exposing.” She had told him. And she had been right. Apparently the Governor was paranoid enough to not only impede on people’s lives, he had the amazing idea of spying on them as well. It was one night that they were talking to some people who were admitting to starting a small rebellion and asking for aid, and the next they were being arrested for “impeding on the will of the Governor” on their ship.

Had they gone willingly? Of course not. But not much can be argued when you’re unconscious because of stun bolts and you’re suddenly dragged halfway across the planet.

And so, they now knelt before the new Twi’lek Governor as he sat upon what looked like a throne with a Devaronian by his side. While their bindings weren’t inhibiting their connection to the Force, they had some difficulty with their hands literally tied behind their back. It also didn’t help that their original captors decided to place the barrels of their blasters to the backs of their heads, with the firm belief from them that they no longer had their stuns on.

“I give my people what they need,” the Governor stated, acting as if he lamented the loss of his people’s trust, “I provide for them. I put sanctions to keep them safe from this war. A war that your people started, Jedi!” He yelled, pointing over to the two as they stayed on their knees. Anakin glaring up at the man and Ahsoka’s eyes darting around the room.

“I am sure your people are very thankful for your work, Your Honor,” the Devaronian said, using a voice both Jedi could detect fake sympathy from. “The masses adore you.” His eyes then turned to duo, glimmering with golden hatred. “It is obvious that these Jedi have planted the idea of usurp your rightful spot as leader onto your people.”

“What a bunch of poodoo.” Anakin loudly proclaimed, rolling his eyes obnoxiously. He looked directly at the Governor, who appeared taken aback by the sudden statement but was quickly recovering. “You cannot be stupid enough to believe that, can you?”

The Twi’lek opened his mouth, but the Devaronian quickly spoke. “You will not speak to His Honor that way, Jedi scum!” As he spit out the practical slur to him, Anakin felt the barrel pull back and suddenly the butt of the blaster connected to the back of his head. He grunted and fell forward, only to be grabbed by his hair and roughly pulled up, the barrel to his temple.

“Should I kill ‘em, Your Honor?” The Quarren holding the blaster asked, pressing the weapon harder into Anakin’s skin and pulling his hair more. While he directed the question to the Governor, Anakin couldn’t help but notice that his eyes looked at the Devaronian “advisor.” How ordinary for the advisor to be the real bad guy, it almost made Anakin huff with boredom…had not the threat of death been pressing against him.

As the Governor opened his mouth again, a deep and guttural growl came from beside Anakin and a low threat snarled, “You won’t hurt him.”

The Governor, “advisor,” and even Anakin and the one holding him at gunpoint looked over at Ahsoka, who remained kneeling with barrel to her head, as she seethed up at the Twi’lek. She was breathing heavier now, what looked to be fangs barred out, and Anakin could sense the absolute fury she felt through their Bond.

“Ahsoka…” Anakin started to warn, before the Governor actually laughed.

“Oh child,” He mused, standing up, his demeanor changing from the worried and forlorn leader to an inconsiderate and narcissistic demon within a blink of an eye. He began to stalk towards them, his smile never leaving his face and his eyes never casting away from hers. “How it must feel to be young and indestructible.” As he reached them, his hand reached down and cupped her chin. Though she was already staring at him and practically hissing, he pushed her chin up more, as if trying to control where she looked. “Tell me, little child…what will you do if I do hurt him?”

“I will kill you.” She warned back, not a second’s breath between those words.

And there they hung. Like a chandelier from the ceiling, the words were daunting and left all to speculate. Anakin could only stare at her, realizing now that her fists were clenched and she propped her feet to stand at the balls of them. As if she were ready to lunge…The Governor laughed, more nervously this time, and pulled back his hand to stand fully. Still standing close and hovering over her, he asked, “And…pray tell, how do you plan to do that?”

And Ahsoka, his blasted cocky Padawan, actually shrugged and said, “Like this.” Before she pushed off the ground and her forehead connected with the Governor’s nose. As he cried out and grabbed for his face, feeling the blood pour from his nose, her holder gathered himself and aimed his blaster towards her. Now on her feet, Ahsoka looked and quickly ducked as he fired, the bolt connecting to the Governor’s chest where he fell back unceremoniously and died before hitting the ground. The Togruta then swung her foot, knocking the blaster from his hand before swinging her other leg and kicking him in the face.

Ahsoka jumped and swung her arms under her legs, bringing them front in time for her to lift them up and her cuffs get shot apart from the Quarren holding onto Anakin. She took the time to grab him with the Force then throw him to the two guards who stood at the doorway, knocking them down. She spun around, a ball of orange and blue fury, and faced the Devaronian now holding Anakin’s hair as he pressed his own blaster to her Master’s temple.

He smiled at her, a wicked smile, to signify to her that he had won. He stopped her little tantrum, and was going to kill them for it. Ahsoka only stared into his eyes as his finger lingered on the trigger. “I must say,” He monologued. All villains monologued. “You helped me out a lot by killing the little nuisance. Makes me a bit sad to have to take you out.” He pressed the barrel deeper into her Master’s skin, making him wince. “Now, surrender, or else your Master’s body is going to be among the one’s you left here.”

Ahsoka actually hesitated, her hands balled into fists as she glared at the man, her eyes only flickering down to Anakin to see him. As blue eyes met blue, Anakin felt a soft whisper through their Bond. _“When I move, you pull away.”_

“Ahsoka,” He breathed. Not scared for himself, never scared about his own well-being, but scared about what in the burning hell was she thinking of doing. Her eyes flickered back to the Devaronian and she slowly raised her hands. A trick Anakin taught her. His eyes widened as recognition set in and the hand loosened on his hair.

The Devaronian began to chuckle, turning his blaster now to Ahsoka, saying, “There we go. That’s a good girl.” Anakin bit his tongue hard, tasting his blood, but seeing Ahsoka acting collected as she stared down this adversary. When had she become like this? So untouched by danger, so fearless in the face of captivity or worse?

Then, she moved. She reached out a hand and pulled the blaster to her hand with the Force. Anakin bounded away from the Devaronian and rolled, pulled his hands to his chest and standing to witness his Padawan, his Ahsoka, beating the crap out of the man in a fist fight.

He swung, she dodged, and delivered her own blow to his cheek. He punched again, and she turned before sending two quick jabs to his sternum. He pulled back, and she jumped, kicking him in the face. He groaned and grabbed at his nose, snarling out when he pulled his hands back and his nose poured out blood as it was snapped to the side. He ran for her but she pulled up another kick, this time to his groin, and it halted him completely. He fell to the floor, grabbing at his now painful bits, and Ahsoka took the opportunity to kick him in the face once more – effectively knocking him unconscious.

Now, there was just heavy breathing that echoed in the small chamber of unconscious bodies and one dead Governor. Anakin looked at his Padawan and watched as she remained at attention, hands still closed in fists, her body tense and ready for action. She was sweating, but she looked like she could go five more rounds with the same group of people. When had she learned to fight like this?

Their Bond was swirling with thoughts from her. _“Protect him. Protect him. He can’t end up like Khalifa. Don’t let him end up like Khalifa.”_ Images of forests and the face of a young girl with brown hair flashed in her mind and before his eyes. Blaster fire and hissing rang in his ears.

Wasskah.

“Ahsoka,” Anakin called, trying to catch her through the raging thoughts. When she didn’t answer, he approached, grabbing her shoulder. “Ahsoka.”

She turned, her eyes wild but beginning to well with tears. He bent down a bit, trying to be at her level (how had she grown so much but was still so short?), and said, “It’s okay. I’m safe.”

That seemed to finally stop the thoughts. Or at least, it felt like it, because as she realized it she immediately pulled her up shields and looked away. “I’m sorry, Master.” She looked around, saying, “I…lost control for a second.” Her eyes settled on the dead Governor, the only casualty in this fight – the only thing she had actually promised to do.

“Hey,” he called to her again, turning her to face him. “You did great. You got us out of a tough situation where I didn’t really have a plan on what to do.” He could see that there was a light that shone, with a possible quip there waiting to come out, but she kept her mouth closed. So, he quipped it for her, “Yes, I know. When do I ever have a plan that would have helped us then?” Her small smile confirmed it and he smiled back.

“Now,” He stood straighter and held up his hands, “Let’s get these cuffs off of me, and let’s go back to the people. I’m sure they’d be happy to know that there has been a change in command.”

“Yes, Master.” Ahsoka said with a smile, the light back in her eyes and their Bond at peace with no swirling thoughts. Though, Anakin did keep to mind the name Khalifa, and suspected he would have to ask her about it at some point soon.


	2. Rex and the Predators

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Rex completely forgets his Commander is 100% a ferocious hunter.

If Captain Rex were to ever be asked how he thought he would die, he would say blaster fire or possibly explosion. He was a soldier, and soldiers died in the war by the hundreds every day, why would his death be any special? Well, because he was the Captain of Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano, the two most amazing and reckless Jedi he had ever met.

However, he couldn’t blame them for this latest stunt. The 501st and their General and Commander were sent out to Ralltiir after rumors of a Separatist bomb factory had been given to the Republic. Though rumors usually flew over the heads of the Jedi Council, according to Commander Tano, this one seemed to strike them differently. Rex supposed it was because the planet was a member to the Galactic Republic, but remained primarily silent and neutral. So if rumors arose that an undecided planet was suddenly hosting the enemy’s bomb facility…those cases would need to be investigated.

A small squadron was taken down onto the planet’s surface, and from there, they were split into pairs of two to search the rumored location. This location, which contained the base of a mountain, half of said mountain, and the surrounding forest was more than 40,000 square feet. It would take them hours, if not a full rotation, to find this alleged facility. Rex remembered Coric asking the Commander why didn’t they try and sense for it? The younger Togruta only smiled and said, “Cause then what’s the fun of a good hunt?” Of course, whas a joking, but Rex only assumed they couldn’t sense the spot for one reason or another.

So, the teams were gathered. “Group” A was General Skywalker, who was adamant about working alone and scaling the mountain. This was fine by everyone else, as they would rather try to stay as close to the ground as possible for once. Group B was the Captain and the Commander, assigned by the General to keep the Commander in check, while also keeping an eye on her so she didn’t suddenly disappear again. Group C was Fives and Jesse, Group D was Fox and Kano, then Group E was Dogma and Denal. Groups C and D were tasked with patrolling the base and searching for anything unusual in the area. Group E was sent to check the eastern portion of the forest, leaving Group B with the west.

Rex kept one of his weapons out, surveying the area slowly, while the Commander walked next to him quietly. From what she explained to him, her headtails and lekku were able to hear some things better than other humanoids. Apparently they could also feel vibrations? He didn’t understand how it worked, but just accepted that he should be quiet if they were searching for something.

At one point, she must have heard something, because she held up her hand and he froze. “Something’s ahead.” Her eyes narrowed, but she didn’t pull out her own weapon.

“Droids?” The Captain asked, aiming his blaster forward towards the area she was looking. It was to a tree that was split in the middle, showing another trunk behind it. He couldn’t see anything, but he was beginning to feel anxious. What couldn’t he see that she could hear?

“No.” She placed her hand on his weapon, forcing him to lower it. “It’s organic. I can hear a heartbeat.” She must have sensed his surprised because she looked up at him and said, “Faintly, mind you, but it is there.”

Rex nodded, knocking himself mentally for not bringing a heat scanner. He and his men hadn’t though they would need it for a usually droid-run facility. “What do you want to do, Commander?” He looked down at her. Even in the two years they knew each other she was still short. If they had counted her headtails (which he didn’t) she would only pass him by a few centimeters.

Ahsoka continued to look forward, towards whatever she had heard or sensed before. “You stay here.” She ordered. “I won’t be too far,” She looked back up at him and gave a cocky grin, “So if I start yelling, you come running. Deal?”

Rex, despite himself, smiled under his helmet. “You know the General wouldn’t be too happy if I let you go search a random noise you heard by yourself, right?”

She rolled her eyes and pushed him playfully, walking towards the sound. “Then I’ll hopefully only yell loud enough for you to hear it, Rexter!”

That’s how he ended up here. Standing amongst some trees, weapon in hand, waiting for his Commander to come back. It hadn’t been long, mind you, but he was never comfortable in these kinds of places. He needed open spaces, wide areas, so that he could see where an attack was coming from. This many trees was giving possibly enemies advantage points that he couldn’t even look for.

So, when he heard a noise coming from behind him, he spun around with blaster aimed and ready to fire. He felt eyes on him, but nothing he could see was coming forward. The sunlight was starting to fade, a rotation was coming to a close. The Captain hadn’t heard a thing from the other Groups, no closing in on leads and nothing about regrouping for future planning. A part of him wanted to reach out, but in case there was something happening that could be jeopardized by him doing so, he only decided to call out.

“Commander?” He called to whatever eyes were looking at him, wherever they were. “If you’re planning on trying to jump me, I wouldn’t suggest it.” But a sickening part of him didn’t feel like it was his Commander. With that sinking feeling, he slowly began to pull out his other blaster, the other still trained on the location.

That was when a beast of long fangs, nails, and stripped cream fur came lunging for him with a snarl.

Rex dove for the side, rolling out the way as the creature landed on the spot where he just was. The Captain looked and fired, watching as the bolt hit the beast in the shoulder. A warning shot, hopefully to scare away the thing while also not giving away his position. The creature, instead, roared at him and lunged again. Rex dove again, but wasn’t faster this time. While he was able to dodge the initial biting, the creature’s left paw scratched its claws through his armor and forced him down. The shock of being thrown down knocked the weapon out of his hand and slammed his head into his helmet.

Slightly pinned on the ground, Rex moved to reach for his blaster before quickly reaching his arm up to stop the beast from biting down onto him. Thankfully, his armed arm prevented from the sharpest canines from cutting through. Rex grunted and tried to shove off the creature, pushing off of the shoulder and trying to kick it off. Seeing his biting attempt failing, it pulled back and swung with its free paw, slashed across Rex’s helmet and a snarl.

Rex’s head slammed to the side again, thankful that the armor was good enough to not get cut through. The beast tried to bit for his head and he yelled out, grabbing the two large canines and pushing it up so the mouth couldn’t wrap around his head. He could see the throat vibrate as it snarled and growled against him, a paw reaching up and scratching at it to make him let go. Rex held tight, feeling his muscles tighten and being to tire as he continued to push back with all he could so he wouldn’t get eaten. This wasn’t how he was supposed to die. He was a soldier. Soldiers die in battle, not against this large beasts that could eat his head in one bite.

Suddenly, the creature was pulled off and flew across the grass, its back slamming into a tree. Rex blinked away spots in his eyes and reached back, grabbing his blaster and hearing footsteps run to him before sliding.

“Rex.” He turned back and saw his Commander, eyes wide and panting, sweating. “Rex, did you get hurt? Did anything cut through?” She was searching his armor, each jump of her eyes landing on a different cut or but that this thing somehow dug into the metal. He noticed there was a scratch on her cheek, not a deep one, but one that was softly bleeding.

“No.” He said, running his fingers across his helmet, feeling the deep gashes into the armor, the visor decidedly ruined. As his hand moved, he saw the beast running back towards them. “Commander-!”

Her head wiped around, those Padawan beans of hers slapping against her back lek. She rose quickly as it neared her, and Rex pulled his blaster up to fire…before Ahsoka herself lunged at the beast and it shoved her to the ground. The shock form the image of the thin, short Togruta pinned beneath the beast before her legs swung up and jammed into its chest before she threw it into the sky made Captain Rex’s jaw drop.

Ahsoka stood back up, and he heard a new kind of sound. A deep, threatening snarl, _from_ his Commander. Her shoulders hunched, her arms by her sides as if she were preparing for some sort of attack. She was positioned in a way that made her seem larger than what she looked, more intimidating. And she was standing right in front of him.

“Commander-” The creature landed on its feet, dropping for a second as it shook its head from the disorientation. Something looked wrong about one of its back legs, but it stood back up.

“Rex,” She didn’t turn to him. Instead, she was watching as the beast stood back up and roared at her. She slipped off her leather gloves, tossing them to the side and flexing her hands. He could see what looked like talons poking through her nails. “Contact Master Skywalker and let him know we need to regroup immediately.”

“Commander?” The beast leapt again.

“ _Now, Rex_!” She yelled back, before Ahsoka Tano jumped towards the animal, snarling and roaring herself, her hands swinging as if she were trying to deliver her own scratches.

Ahsoka didn’t yell. At least, if she did, it was almost never towards him or his men. The only other time she ever did was when they refused to fall back without her, and that was because she was attempting to give them more time to escape from an impending droid overflow. So when she barked at him and order, his training kicked in before his desire to help fight with his Commander and he punched his comm.

“General, come in.” He called, looking over as Ahsoka delivered a slash across the animal’s face before pushing it back with the Force. It slammed into another tree and shook it off, that back leg twitching and making it limp before bounding back to her.

_“Give me a sec, Rex.”_ The General’s voice came in. Ahsoka rolled to the side, avoiding the attack before diving back into a fray. Rex began to aim for the beast, trying to get a quick kill shot on it, but unable to get a clean view while she was in the way.

“General!” He barked a bit into the comm, a part of himself feeling guilty for yelling at his top most commanding officer, before he clarified. “It’s the Commander.”

Not even a breath later, _“What’s going on, Rex?”_ Rex looked up as Ahsoka was knocked to the ground. The beast jumped on top of her and her unprotected arms raised and she did the same as he did before, grabbing the canines and pushing it up to stop from biting. However, she didn’t have her gloves, so when the beast started clawing at her hand to stop it, it actually dug into her skin. Rex fired off a blast into his side and shoulder, causing it to cry out and jump off of her.

_“Rex.”_ The General called again, and Ahsoka quickly got up, taking the time to pull out her shorto blade and activating it. Her hands was bleeding heavily and she jumped back into the fight with the animal. _“Rex! What’s happening down there?”_ The General demanded, his voice sounding both irritated but overwhelmingly worried.

“We engaged a native animal, sir,” Rex explained, watching as Ahsoka jumped around the beast, avoiding the slashes from the quickly tiring animal. He started aiming with his weapon again, trying to get any kind of shot on the thing that would actually stop it. “It and Commander Tano are currently fighting.”

_“I’ll be down immediately. I’ll get Dogma and Denal to meet you there for backup. How many are there?”_ Rex heard more growling, and turned to see another, larger beast, coming from the location that Ahsoka had gone to before.

“We just had a new visitor!” He answered, firing off his blaster to the beast. The shots hit the shoulders and around the head, and the animal shook it off before charging to Rex. This one was larger, faster – but not as fast as a Jedi. As he continued to fire, aiming now for legs to stop the thing, a flash of orange, blue, and maroon came in front of threw the thing back with the Force. Ahsoka looked at him, panting and sweating harder than before, before she gave a small smile.

“Sorry Rex, but I’m gonna need eyes up there.” His eyes widened before he was suddenly up in the air. He yelled as he went up high, moved in an arch, then fell back down. He crashed onto a heavy branch. His arms and legs wrapped around it and he looked down. Rex was now so high off of the ground, resting on one of the higher branches of the closest tree. Ahsoka was re-engaged in the beasts, hunched over, now gripping both lightsabers.

Rex, now standing on the branch, fired his weapon from the taller trees at the animals, keeping the larger one away from Ahsoka as he pressed onto his comm again. “Denal! Dogma! Location!”

_“Less than 5 clicks from your location, sir!”_ Denal answered back quickly. Rex could hear the armor scrapping and hitting each ends with the steps he was taking to get there. The Captain looked down and fired more at the larger one, trying to push it back as Ahsoka was trying to tire other the original attacker while she was beginning to slow down. She was getting tired. She couldn’t last much longer, he had to do something.

The Commander Force pushed the larger one as the smaller one itself was slowing down, but something about it wasn’t stopping. It wouldn’t let itself stop. Ahsoka wiped something from her fact, and Rex caught the sight of more blood on her arm. She turned her head up and yelled to him, “Rex!”

“Yes, Commander?” He called back, watching the smaller one take the opportunity to bolt to her again.

“Take care of this one, would you?” She called, turning back to the animal and throwing her arms up, the beast flying into the air. Rex took the few moments it was high enough for him to guarantee a shot to put at least three into the head. The animal cried out before landing on the ground, this time on its side. One down, one to go.

Ahsoka was circling this one again, the larger one snarling deeply to her. But she didn’t back down, no, rather it appeared she snapped at it, baring her own sharp teeth. The beast took this as a challenge and lunged at her again. It looked like Ahsoka was trying to roll out of the way, but this one was too faster for her slower body. It landed on top of her, blocking her completely from Rex. Its entire body covered her smaller one, and all he could see was the head moving up and down while the snapping of teeth together resounded.

“Commander!” Rex yelled, finally being able to pull out his other blaster and firing off both into the creature’s back. It howled in pain, the back arching as it took bolt after bolt after bolt. Rex stopped counting, and didn’t stop firing. He couldn’t hear Ahsoka, he didn’t know what happened once it landed on her. He only stopped firing once it fell unceremoniously on top of the Commander beneath it.

“Commander,” He breathed, staring at it and trying to see if the form moved. It wasn’t. Rex holstered his weapon and tried to move down the tree as quickly as he could without breaking any of his bones. He ended up just clinging to the tree and sliding down it at one point, falling a few feet and landing on his back. He gasped in pain and groaned, rolling over, before getting up and walking over to the creature.

Rex knelt down and started pushing on it. “C’mon, Commander. C’mon.” He slowly started to peel up the animal when it suddenly was flung in the air, and a gasping Ahsoka sat up as it fell to the ground hard.

“Kid,” Rex grabbed her shoulder and looked her over. The cut across her cheek was still bleeding, but he was more worried about the slit in her lip and gash on her left arm. Blood covered her mouth and arm, but from what he could see, she hadn’t gotten bit. That made him feel a bit better – that and the fact that she hadn’t suffocated from underneath that animal. He pulled off his helmet and tried to catch her eyes as she was trying to catch her breath. “Hey, kid, you okay?” He finally shook her, catching her attention.

Finally, she looked at him, her eyes wide and her breathing centering itself. There was silence between the two before she broke out into a weird, bloody grin, and said, “Didn’t think I died from a tiger, did you Rex? I didn’t think you thought so little of my abilities.”

Rex just stared at her before he smiled at her, saying, “Never Commander, but last I checked, neither of us had real experience with a Ralltiir tiger.”

Ahsoka nodded at him before turning around and seeing Dogma and Denal breaking through the trees, panting heavily and looking around with their weapons prepped for fire. Following them, General Skywalker fell from the sky, landing in front of his Padawan and flourishing his own weapon.

General Skywalker, Dogma, and Denal took in the scenario and finally settled their eyes on the two figures kneeling/sitting on the ground. The General finally shook his head, putting away his lightsaber, before smiling at Ahsoka. “You just had to cause some trouble with the wildlife, didn’t you?”

“Just adding, ‘fought a Ralltiir tiger and lived’ to the list of things you’ve never done that I have.” The Togruta smirked, again with that bloody smile, as Rex stood and helped her to her feet.

The General rolled his eyes and shook his head again as Rex simply smiled at the two, his helmet now tucked under his arm. Yes, his General and Commander would definitely get him killed one day, in some outrageous and special way that would probably make Clone history. But until them he would serve them proudly, tiger fights and all.


	3. Obi-wan and the Pain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Where Obi-wan tries to ignore his pain, and Ahsoka tries to do something about it.

Whenever they were flying in space, more particularly when Anakin was flying them through space, it seemed to be a norm for poor Obi-wan Kenobi that the ship would crash.

He, his former apprentice, and subsequently Ahsoka had been sent to scout out Kashyyyk to determine if Separatist advances had reached the main system planet yet. There had been various attacks towards the outer planets in the Kashyyyk system from the Separatist Alliance, and the Council had feared for the main planet and the safety of it’s people. Mainly, there was fear of the loss of control of a very central planet to the Galactic Republic for navigation. So, the trio was sent out to make a routine check to simply determine if there had been any Separatist developments.

The flight had been uneventful, of course, with Obi-wan and Anakin sitting primarily in the cockpit as they flew while Ahsoka was attempting some sort of meditation in the back. At first, Obi-wan had been surprised that the young apprentice did not want to co-pilot along side her Master. When she had retreated to the back, Anakin had discreetly reminded him of the Padawan’s experience on one of the Kashyyyk system planets. The older Master understood her discomfort in coming to this system again, but could not fully understand what was causing the usually chipper and easily rebounding Togruta down.

“There was this girl,” Anakin had explained to them as he fiddled with something while in hyperspace, “A Human. Ahsoka won’t talk about her, but something happened to her on Wasskah.”

“Why do you say that?” The older man had asked, rubbing his beard and looking at his old Padawan as he reached out to the younger one with the Force. She couldn’t hear their discussion, but he could still sense her mass discomfort and hints of pain she unknowingly projected.

“She didn’t return to Coruscant with Ahsoka and the other younglings.” Anakin said, a ting of sadness entering his tone. What Obi-wan could feel being projected, he was certain Anakin could feel more clearly. Of course, her mental shields were up and locked tight, but what leaked around the edges was enough for him to know that she still felt some pain from the death of this girl.

The pain and discomfort resonated during the duration of the trip, up until Anakin called for her from the front and she returned. Her face was neutral and she didn’t project anymore, but Obi-wan could see that she was still experiencing those feelings from the way she was clenching her fists tightly behind her as she stood between them. The three watched as they began to exit hyperspace in which Ahsoka muttered behind them, “I have a bad feeling about this.”

As Anakin opened his mouth to respond, they came to view the atmosphere. The usual blue and green planet with light white clouds floating by was instead covered in swirling clouds that were shades from white to grey and some turning pure black closer to the planet.

The discomfort was forgotten, and now, Obi-wan felt panic from Ahsoka as she stared down at the planet. He immediately sensed Anakin trying to send her some form of comfort through the Force, but it seemed to only quiet the fear rather than settle her.

“We need to get onto the surface.” Obi-wan explained slowly, looking over at Anakin with a quick cast of his eyes to Ahsoka. Her hands were now gripping the seats, with the one on Anakin’s being tighter than the one on his. He turned back to his apprentice. “Can you get us down there safely with the storms this active?”

“I can try and break through them.” He explained, his eyes jumping around the planet as he continued to press that warm comfort to his Padawan. “Maybe I can use the eye of one of the storms to at least get past the worst of it and find some place to land and wait for the storm to blow past.”

“No.” Ahsoka immediately stated. When Anakin’s eyes widened and he began to turn to look at her, she seemed to catch herself. “I mean, the winds on these planets are strong. They may just knock us off course and cause damage to the ship.”

“She has a fair point, Anakin,” Obi-wan agreed. Though he knew it was just an attempt to either stall their efforts to enter the atmosphere or genuine worry of being stuck on a planet in this system. He looked across what he could see on the planet from their viewpoint before pointing, “There. A break between the storms in the southern hemisphere. It isn’t exactly where we are supposed to land, but until we get past these storms I think we can be a bit late to meeting the Council.”

Anakin’s eyes darted to Ahsoka for a split second before he nodded to his Master and began to descend towards that small break between two storms. He could feel gratitude come from Ahsoka, and he almost swore he could hear a, “thank you” from behind him.

Descending into the atmosphere, Obi-wan looked around as the storms appeared larger and larger. Or were they getting closer? He could feel Ahsoka’s grip on his chair tighten, and he took the chance to finally look at her. Her eyes were darting around, she was biting her lip, her shoulders were hunched. Something wasn’t right.

“Ahsoka-” He called before rain slammed into their scout ship, hitting it so hard it sounded more like hail bits. He looked back out to the sky and saw they had gone into an active storm, the clouds fading from white to grey.

“We need to pull back.” She said urgently, her eyes still staring out the visor as the sky they descended into was beginning to turn from that grey to pitch black. “Anakin, we need to get out of this storm!”

“I’m trying to get through it as fast as possible, Snips!” Anakin yelled back at her, his tone a bit sharper than hers. He sounded irritated, but it didn’t seem like it was aimed at her. Rather, he seemed to be straining with the controls. Obi-wan grabbed his set and tried to stabilize their slowly bumping ride.

“No! We need to pull-” As she yelled, the world around the trio exploded with light and sound. It was more defining than a tank shot from close range, causing all to cover their ears (in Ahsoka’s case, leks). The ship felt hit with a bolt, and it began to spiral. They had been struck by some lightning, and that mid-second the two had their hands from the controls was causing it to shake and sway. Buttons and alarms were blaring as the ship was beginning to free-fall from the sky.

“Ahsoka, get in your seat!” Anakin yelled as the Togruta slipped into the seat behind Obi-wan, buckling in tightly. The younger man grabbed at the controls and tried holding it steady as he pressed hard on various buttons.

Obi-wan followed suit, trying to press anything that seemed useful. Side thrusters? Sure. Higher gravitation within ship? Wonderful! Whatever could stop them from spinning and tumbling from the sky.

“Nothing’s working!” Anakin called, looking out as a looming dark figure that was coming closer by the second was in view. He began to pull his buckles on as well as an oxygen mask. “Everyone strap in tight, we need to evacuate!”

“Wait, Anakin-!” Obi-wan called as the mask fell in front of him and Anakin activated the emergency releases for their seats. Obi-wan quickly pulled it on as the ceiling above them opened and they shot into the sky, the pelting of rain slamming into them as the ship careened into what appeared to be a mountain. As Obi-wan watched the ship turn into a ball of flames and explosions amidst rain and thunder, the ball surrounded him.

He closed his eyes tightly, trying to tie himself tighter to the Force to keep himself from absolutely destroying the inside with his vomit. He felt the ball he was trapped within be pushed by the harsh winds off of whatever course it was supposed to be taking. The escape pods – if one could call them that – were supposed to have a form of magnetism that kept pods close to one another regardless of how far away they fall so escapees would not be lost from their group. However…Obi-wan highly doubted they were built for this kind of tough storm.

What else they were built for was resistance against harsh and sharp points that the pod could make contact with, such as some trees or mountains. What they probably weren’t tested against was a bolt of lightning.

As Obi-wan fell, he felt the Force screaming at him. To move, to push away, to do _something_ that would change his position. He wasn’t as quick as the Force, however, because the second after he got the warning there was another loud clap of thunder and a flash of light before a tear slashed itself into being to the left of his pod. The wind escaped his pod and he once again began to freefall, this time, in a less protected state than a metal ship or a protected pod.

Quickly. He had to act quickly. Obi-wan pulled off the mask and looked to the side. He was falling fast, and the sky was so dark with the rain so thick he couldn’t see if Anakin or Ahsoka were any where close to him. He felt the pod begin to turn, and he took the opportunity to pull off his buckles. He grabbed his lightsaber before rolling off of the chair he was previously sat in. He slashed sideways at the slash, opening it up completely to allow him to freefall without aid.

He gripped his lightsaber tight, slashing as he came to treetops and branches. Trying to carve an opening for him to fall through first before slowing his descent, he focused on anything around him in a general region, not aiming for specifics. When he saw the ground coming closer, he thrusted his palm down and called the Force to slow himself down. It succeeded…but something wasn’t right again. The ground was coming too quickly. Even with his pushing he was only partially slowing his descent. He swung his legs around, aiming to present his full body to push against the ground to alleviate the fall against his body.

He slammed into the ground harder than he intended. Nothing had broken, but nothing felt too great either. Obi-wan fell to his knees and panted, hunching over to sit on all fours, closing his eyes and trying to calm his racing heart with the rain slamming into his back. He was drenched by now, his hair matting to his forehead and covering some of his eyes. But he was alive.

The Force was screaming at him again. And once again, it was cruelly too slow (or was he getting too old to recognize to move sooner?). As he looked up to possibly stand, a flash of pain ripped his leg and he cried out. He immediately sat on his knees and twisted around, seeing a large branch that had a perfect slice at one end of it sticking out from his calf. One of the branches he had cut came back for some sort of twisted revenge, was this planet truly that cruel?

The Master panted and reached behind him. He could grab it from his position, but as he attempted to pull it, there was harsher pain that made him see stars. He ground his teeth but a cry came out regardless. He released it, and closed his eyes tight as the pain began to only slightly subside. The object had to be pulled out. Regardless of his pain, it would only worsen if he leaves it in. So, Obi-wan panted hard and hovered his hand around it. His own body would betray him…but not the Force. He used the Force to grab it before pulling his hand up harshly, ripping it from his leg as he yelled out louder. Pain flooded him quickly and he laid in the lush grass that was slowly transforming into mud. He felt pain flaring from his leg as he felt himself draining from the entire endeavor.

Ahsoka and Anakin would be there for him any moment…how could a short rest until they arrive do any harm? The Master felt the Force calling to him again, but he couldn’t react properly as he slipped into some kind of darkness.

It didn’t take long before he was being shaken. A voice was calling out to him, calling his name, with a desperation of someone who had seen something like this happen before. He opened his blue eyes and looked up at a figure of orange, blue, white, and maroon who slowly came into focus. It was Ahsoka, who was gripping his shoulder and staring at him. The rain had slowed down, and was now only a slow trickle that framed her face and splattered onto his face. There was some drops that were trailing down her face, but a part of him felt it wasn’t the rain causing that.

“Master Obi-wan.” She breathed, a small smile coming to her lips as she pulled away. “Thank the Force. I was so worried.”

He blinked a few times, looking around her. There was no tall, dark figure that he was familiar with. “Anakin.” He asked, swallowing a bit. When had his mouth gone dry. “Where is Anakin?” He asked, looking up at her but not moving from his position where he laid on his back. When had he been turned to this position?

She shook her head, a frown returning, “No clue.” She met his eyes, “My pod was blown off by the wind, you were the closest one.”

His brow furrowed and he pulled his arms to push himself up, “We need to find-” Until pain split across his body as his leg moved. He grunted and fell back, gripping his hand tight.

“Don’t move.” Ahsoka warned, a bit late, before pressing a hand softly to his shoulder. “Your leg, it was pierced by something, and it looks…” She paused, thinking for a moment, before telling him honestly, “Really kriffed up.”

“You shouldn’t use that language.” He warned, groaning as he attempted to at least sit up. Ahsoka aided him and he leaned back on his hands as he stared down at his legs. The one pierced, his left one, had a small patch of blood that was staining his tan robes. He went to turn it to see the back when the pain flared again, and he hissed.

“And you shouldn’t move.” She shot back, looking at him with such a worried expression it made him feel guilty to try that again.

“Alright,” He agreed. He looked around a bit. He had fallen in the midst of multiple trees, how had she found him? Where had she even landed? He looked up and saw his work from before a perfect him-sized shape were cut from the trees, and a part of him felt proud until he remembered it was the trees that left him in this state.

He returned his attention to his leg. He could feel the humming of pain from the wound, and didn’t exactly want to test it, but he knew that they had to find Anakin. He looked back at Ahsoka, and held up a hand, “Please, help me up. We need to find Anakin.”

“We need to find you a place to rest, you mean.” She shot back, grabbing his hand regardless and standing to pull him up. “You can’t sit up by yourself, and I doubt you will be able to walk without me. And, no offense Master, but you nor Anakin are exactly light to carry around.” That last part held a bit of joking, but her tone had remained serious throughout.

He sighed and said, “None taken.” Before pulling himself up with his body and pushing himself to stand with the Force. He put pressure to stand on his right leg, and was able to rise but the second he put his left foot down onto the ground with the slightest pressure, he fell to Ahsoka’s side. She caught him, with a grunt mind you, and stabilized them both.

“See.” She pointed, groaning to put his arm around her shoulder and rising to her full height. He had to hunch a bit to meet it, but the pressure off of his leg made him thankful for the moment. “Let’s get out of the rain…there was a mountain nearby, if I remember, that kind of destroyed our ship.” She slowly took a step and he followed suit with his right. “You will need to walk with your busted one…but I’ll try to keep your weight somewhat off.”

He smiled at her, softly, and said, “That was what I was afraid of…thank you, though.” They took a step again and the pain flared, so they quickly moved to the next.

Ahsoka stopped them again, asking, “Do you think you’ll be able to handle this?” She was looking up at him again, her eyes wide and filled to the brim with worry. Force, she was practically projecting it to him.

He smiled again, this time to alleviate her worry while lying to himself. “I will have to. If we need to stop, I will tell you.”

She nodded and the two began to make their way towards whatever mountain she had seen. She explained, as they walked, that it was such a large landmark that Anakin should come towards it as well. And that, perhaps, there was some shelter they could take from the rain. He had listened as dutifully as he could, but the pain was making him regret getting up in the first place.

They had begun their trek in what seemed like midday, and by nightfall, they had only just reached the mouth of a cave. Ahsoka lead him a few steps in before slowly setting him down. He leaned against the cold and damp cavern wall, panting softly and trying to gather himself. Ahsoka quickly started a fire with whatever nearby wood was dry and her saber. The fire was small, and could barely reach him with heat, but Obi-wan appreciated the attempt.

She then sat beside him, leaning her head back against the wall and closing her eyes. The two remained in amicable silence for a bit. While Anakin and her had such a strong and unbreakable relationship, one that teetered the line of attachment, he and her had never gotten that close. Though he considered her a second Padawan, if not a “Great Padawan” as Anakin once called her, they never really developed a Bond. Ahsoka was so much like Anakin in a way – brash, emotional, quick to defend those she cared for. But she was also like himself, or at least, appeared to be more like him than Anakin in diplomacy, mediation, and strategy. He was proud of her many times during their missions together. She was so powerful and developed for her young age, she would make an astounding Jedi Knight one day.

Obi-wan groaned as he shifted, and her eyes cast opened and looked at him again. He smiled softly, saying, “Sorry, young one. This wall is not very comfortable.”

“Apologies I could not find us a soft bed, Master,” She responded with sly sarcasm, smiling softly at him. Ah yes, another trait that he not only taught her, but Anakin as well. Her smile slowly fell and she looked at his leg again. Her eyes lingered there, before she asked, “Master, do you know the technique to Force Heal?”

“Yes,” He responded, and she looked at him with a sparkle in her eye before he quickly said, “But you are not ready for it.”

“I don’t think the idea of readiness should be the main worry at the moment, Master.” She responded, gesturing to his leg, “Your leg is only going to get worst. The least I can do is attempt to heal it.”

“Yes, Ahsoka, it does matter. Even in situations like this.” He explained sternly, gripping his hand tight as pain flashed again as he shifted to sit taller than her. “If you are not trained to have a deep connection to the Light side of the Force you will cause more harm than good on the person you are trying to help.”

That made Ahsoka pause, and she looked away for a second. Regardless of what Anakin had told her, he had a feeling she knew exactly what happened on Mortis. She would always be tainted slightly with the influence the Son had put on her, even if it was the Daughter who gave her life back to the Togruta. Obi-wan was certain she could feel it. She looked back up at him, tears welling into her eyes and she said, “Obi-wan I have to try. Please.” One began to slip down her orange cheek, “I can’t stand to see you in pain.”

He paused for a moment. Ahsoka didn’t usually cry, at least no publicly. He heard from Anakin that she had been devastated after her first failure above Ryloth, so much so that Anakin had requested counseling aid from the mind healers at the Temple. He had been so frightened that she was broken from her first real loss from war.

She was a child, Obi-wan reminded herself. Only 14 when she came into their lives on Christophsis, and now nearly 16. And yet she had seen more death than practically any other child in this galaxy. The conversation about Wasskah returned to his mind, and he looked at her as he realized that once more she was afraid. Afraid not for herself, but for him. Afraid to lose another person.

“Alright,” He relented. Her tense demeanor released and she smiled up at him, her hand coming up to wipe away the tear that fell. She maneuvered to kneel beside his leg and looked at him. “Connect yourself to the Force. Feel deepened by your connection.” He explained slowly. She nodded and closed her eyes. He could feel the Force swell around the two, centering around her and relaxing into her. Her mouth was moving slowly, and he wasn’t certain of what she was saying, but he could feel the Force responding to her kindly.

“When you feel ready,” He pressured the second to last word, watching as her eyes remained closed, “Reach out towards the wound. Imagine yourself stitching it or closing it. Focus on the Force doing the work, not your own body.” Her head nodded and her right hand reached out.

Obi-wan watched intently as the Force responded kindly to the girl. He could feel his leg burn with a hot pain that felt as if he were dipped into a bacta tank without warning. He gripped his hand tight, staying silent to let her concentrate. He felt his skin starting to crawl and tighten as it was knitting itself closed. It hurt like a bantha, but she was doing it successfully, at least…until there was a clap of thunder and the rain began to pour hard outside once more. Her brow scrunched, and the hot healing was beginning to cool.

“Ahsoka.” Obi-wan called to her, realizing the change. Her hand was shaking and she was trembling. The cold feeling was sinking deep into him, and he felt a tear opening and he gasped. He looked back down at the wound and saw blood dripping again from the wound. “Ahsoka!” He called louder, her figure not moving as tears streamed down her face once again. She was shaking now, her body closing in on itself, as if she were to curl up and hide away. As the tear deepened and he cried out, slamming his hand onto the ground. He cried out once more, “ _Ahsoka!_ ”

The cold pulled away harshly and Obi-wan opened his eyes to Ahsoka as she now was sitting on the ground, crying freely and panting. “I’m sorry.” She whispered, staring at him, before whispering again and again, “I’m sorry, I’m so so sorry. I’m sorry.”

“Ahsoka,” He breathed, staring at her. The pain from the tear was fresh, and he could feel the pain humming again like when he had first woken up. He swallowed and stared at her. “What did you see?”

She stared at him, the tears falling harder, and her mouthed opened before closing. As if she were too afraid to say it. “These abilities,” He explained, trying to keep his mind off of the pain, “They’re harder to manage because of how strong the person needs to be in the Light. They test how strong they are, because the Dark will try and temp them.” She looked back down at the wound, hearing his words but they fell on deaf ears (leks?). Obi-wan groaned and sat forward, grabbing her wrist tightly as he sat bent forward. His leg screamed in pain and she stared at him.

“It is not your fault.” He whispered, and something in her flipped. Her saw as her eyes stopped welling, and she sniffed a bit, her other hand coming up to wipe her eyes.

“I-I…” She stammered, looking down. He squeezed her wrist in reassurance and she swallowed. “When…When I was on Wasskah…there was this girl, Kalifa.” She explained, looking back at him. The tears were returning slowly and she was beginning to tense again. “She had been there with O-mer and Jinx before I got there…Within a rotation or two of me being there, she was killed by the Transdoshans.” The tears fell again, and she gasped as a sob came on. She covered her mouth with her free hand, as if she were trying to catch it and stop it from escaping. “I…I got her killed, Master…If I had been quicker, if I had sensed the danger, if I _wasn’t there_ …Kalifa could still be alive.” She turned completely away from him now, shaking as the sob escaped and she gasped for breath. “But I was so _incompetent_ and…and _arrogant_ that I got her killed. She would never be a Padawan, would never even receive a proper burial…”

Her body tensed once more, and her head bowed, “I…I had to l-leave her there, Master…I-I left her body there to _rot_ …”

Everything out, she let herself succumb to the sob and she tried pulling her hand away to cry. She hunched, turned away from him, crying to the silence of the cave and the raging storm outside. Obi-wan, in all his wisdom, only watched. He knew this feeling. He knew the survivor’s guilt. He felt it immensely when Qui-gon had died. He couldn’t lean on someone then – Anakin was too young and the Council only labelled it as a test for him to rise ranks. No one understood the pain he felt from the loss of his Master. He had been left alone, practically raising a child as he quietly suffered.

He wouldn’t allow that for Ahsoka.

“Ahsoka.” He whispered, pulling at the hand he refused to let her have. “Ahsoka, please look at me.” He felt tears falling down his face. Was it for her? Or was it for the memory of Qui-gon that always made him feel weak? The Togruta looked at him, her eyes bloodshot and the tears staining her cheeks. He pulled on her wrist to his chest, hugging her tight and gripping her so hard that she wouldn’t escape. His chin on top of her lekku and between her headtails, he only said, “I am so sorry.”

The initial shock of Obi-wan Kenobi hugging her subsided, and the cry induced again. Obi-wan let his own tears slip too, but not for Qui-gon. He realized it was more for the death of whatever kind of child Ahsoka could have been. She had been so happy and bright in the beginning of the Clone Wars. So chipper and excited to learn and help. She had brought a light to Anakin after the Battle of Geonosis, and as he realized, she had done the same to him. The loss of Anakin as an apprentice had hit him hard. He couldn’t protect the younger man anymore. He couldn’t keep him safe, locked into their shared chambers to fiddle with mechanics as he went on deadly missions. That fear of seeing him die was strong, but Ahsoka alleviated it some. She would be there to watch. There to protect him when Obi-wan himself couldn’t. She would be there to keep Anakin strong and on the right path.

She had done so much for the Jedi Order, and at the cost of her own innocence.

Ahsoka pulled back moments later, and Obi-wan let her. She sniffled and pushed away the tears, looking up at him, much like a child would to their parent after something like this. “Can I try again?” She whispered, staring up at him and fully expecting him to reject the idea.

And against whatever judgement he was feeling, he nodded, “Of course.”

She returned to her kneeling position before his leg. He watched intently as she closed her eyes and began to whisper again, this time, he could hear her clearly. “I am one with the Force and the Force is with me.” A small chant taught to younglings who couldn’t meditate without aid. It bring their consciousness open to the Force, and it was responding like it had before. It swelled around them both. Instead of reaching out to his leg, she reached out her hand to him. She opened her eyes and looked at him, giving the softest smile he had seen from her in a while.

He grabbed her hand softly, whispering in time with her, “I am one with the Force and the Force is with me.” She smiled wider and closed her eyes once again. They two continued to meditate, and he reached out into the Force to give her courage and strength. He felt something tie them together, something strong and Light. A Bond.

Her other hand reached out in front of his leg and he slowly felt the patching process begin again. It hurt, by the Force did it hurt, but for some reason he felt…above it. Like his body felt it but the Force was pulling it from him. Their Bond was strengthening as she continued, pushing for the wound to heal with the Light.

After a few moments of pure Light, Ahsoka pulled back, panting and looking at the wound. She released his hand and smiled widely. Obi-wan slowly flexed his leg and his eyes widened as he felt absolutely no pain. It was as if nothing had ever happened. He looked at Ahsoka and she was smiling widely. He sat up straight, putting his hand on her shoulder, as he said, “I am so proud of you, Ahsoka.”

As Ahsoka opened her mouth to respond, Anakin walked into the cave, exclaiming, “Well thanks for looking for me, you two!” The two looked up at him as Anakin shook out his hair, completely dripping from the storm outside. When Anakin saw that they were indeed staring at him, he looked between them and asked, “What?”

Obi-wan smiled, saying, “Oh, nothing Anakin.” He pushed against the wall and stood, testing his leg out. “It’s just that it took you forever to find us.”

“Excuse me?” The younger asked, incredulous, and Ahsoka chuckled as she stood too. Obi-wan smiled at her, and sent pride through their Bond, from which he merely felt a soft _“thank you”_ transfer between them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now what kind of fan would I be if I didn't update on May the 4th???...Okay I started this yesterday but now it's gonna be posted on Revenge of the Fifth...so...it still fits???
> 
> Also that last Clone Wars absolutely killed me and I can't even.


	4. Padmé and the Scourge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Ahsoka really does not like politics, but decides to play it with her own rules for Padmé’s sake.

Returning to Coruscant is always a good thing for Anakin Skywalker. Being away from war and back on solid turf is great, sure, but nothing beats seeing his beautiful wife once again after such an exhausting mission. Which is why he stood right before the door of her apartment, holding some flowers that he had run to get to just surprise her a bit more.

He walked in, no need to knock because Padmé would know in just a- “Ah, Master Skywalker!” There he is. C3PO shuffled closer to him, greeting him with whatever kind of ecstatic tone a droid could muster. “My goodness, what a surprise, I am sure the Mistress will be happy to see you.” The droid looked to the bouquet in his hands and raised his arms, “And these flowers are wonderful. I shall find a vase immediately.” Before he turned to shuffle off again.

Even with Threepio somewhat spoiling his surprise, Anakin couldn’t keep the smile from his face. He walked through the veranda to come to her office to the side. The door was open and he walked in, seeing his wife reading what appeared to be a report. So focused, so entranced in whatever she was studying at the time – probably a policy – that she hadn’t even noticed him. Seeing her like this, hair loosely hanging but still tied back in a bun, deep brown eyes jumping across the datapad, her lips moving as she read like she was speaking it…it made his heart warm. “Ahem.” He cleared his throat jokingly, causing her to look up with shock before a smile shifted her full lips.

“Ani.” She was quick to abandon whatever project she was focusing on and hurrying over to him. She was wearing a nightgown, as if she were preparing for bed despite how early it was already in the night – the sun had just started to set. She reached him and he took her in his arms, lifting her up and spinning her around as she giggled, holding onto him tighter. “Ani, Ani!! Let me down!” Her giggles filled him with such a warm joy that he didn’t want this to stop, but did so to respect her wishes. Anakin set her down and smiled, holding out the bouquet to her.

“For you, my lady.” He said with a Skywalker grin that melted hearts. Padmé’s eyes cast to the flowers and took them gently from his hand, smiling softer at them.

“Oh Anakin, they’re beautiful.” She looked up at him, her brown eyes glittering with happiness. But he didn’t ignore the lightening bags under her eyes. Padmé was very well-known for staying up to focus on work and settle issues. It was a bad habit they both shared. While Padmé could spend hours working on a single draft of something to bring before the Senate, Anakin could work on the same mechanism until the sun rose. The Jedi wasn’t sure if it was their stubbornness to make this galaxy a better place, or the romantic idea that they simply couldn’t sleep right without the other right next to them in bed.

“So, what’s been keeping you up lately, angel?” He asked, winding his arm around her waist to pull her close. Even though his feet ached in these boots from standing so long, he didn’t mind it so much with her leaning against him. “A new proposal for the Senate?” He questioned, as if he would win some sort of game by asking, “A policy someone completely miswrote and you need to edit? Or a bill to finally let the generals eat something other than those ration bars?”

Padmé chuckled, pulling from him and walking to the desk she was previously hunched over. C3PO walked in with a glass vase filled with water. “No, surprisingly, everything is peaceful within the Senate now.” She set the flowers in the vase and walked back up to him. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and his hands returned to her hips. Anakin caught something, though, and decided to push.

“Now?” He asked, tilting his head to the side as he only heard the golden droid walking out of the room. “What, did something happen while I was gone?”

While Padmé could fool the world with her voice and her mannerisms, she couldn’t fool Anakin through her eyes. So while she said, “No, nothing major, Ani.” Her eyes shifted from looking at him lovingly to a harder stare that she attempted to fix as soon as she felt the change. As if she were burying something.

He gave her a smirk and quickly pecked her lips, smiling to himself as the softness, and said, “You can’t fool me, angel…” he pressed his forehead against hers, looking directly into her eyes and pulling her closer. “What happened that made you lose so much sleep?”

Finally giving in, Padmé sighed and pulled back, wandering back to her desk to find something. “Ahsoka visited me while you were gone.” She said, pushing some document aside and quickly grabbing it as it teetered off her desk.

“Yeah, she mentioned wanting to see you before I left.” He explained, walking over to stand across from her. His Padawan certainly took a shine to his wife, and it was a good thing. Padmé was level-headed, kind, and wise enough to teach her in ways that he nor Obi-wan could. While he didn’t particularly _like_ some of her lessons (that trip to Onderon still stood out as one of the most reckless things both did), he liked what Ahsoka learned in those times. He definitely noticed she was becoming more strategic and diplomatic – usually trying to solve more issues with words than violence. Of course, that could be an Obi-wan trait too…

“Well, while she was with me, there was a bill that was being pushed through the Senate by Bail.” She explained, her eyes darting around the piles of papers and datapads that littered her space. “This bill was to call for stronger legislation against captured bounty hunters. Ever since the issue with Ziro the Hutt and Cad Bane at the beginning of the Clone Wars, the Senate has been antsy to try and bring more justice against these criminals.”

Anakin nodded, remembering back to that day. Where he had given his wife his lightsaber, out of a show of love and appreciation, and it ended up nearly costing them both their lives. And the lives of multiple other senators, of course. But at the time he was only truly worried about getting Padmé to safety. “Well,” He said, mimicking Obi-wan by rubbing his bare chin. “I can understand where the Senate is coming from there.”

“That’s what the majority thought,” She explained, looking at him with a tired expression and sitting back in her chair. “The minority, run by Aquaris Senator Rafeel Honchi, were pushing back on the bill. They believed that the punishments were too harsh. That there had been times the Republic relied on bounty hunters. That focusing on this small aspect of the war when hundreds were dying was a mockery of the Senate.” She sighed and rubbed her eyes, head bowing again.

If Anakin were to list out the things in his life he didn’t like, the top five would be because of his life on Tatooine. Then, politics would be right afterwards. Anakin preferred using trickery, and mostly intimidation, to get his way with things. Needing to please hundreds of people who represented millions of their kind always both irritated him and made him pity his wife. She was a strong woman, empowering and brave. Unwilling to be fearful for her own life when the lives of many more hang in the balance. It was one of the many reasons he loved her.

“Okay,” He explained, pulling his lovestruck mind back into focus, “What does this have to do with Ahsoka visiting? Did she sit in on the debate?”

“She sat in,” Padmé explained before grabbing the datapad that had been in front of her that whole time. She quickly unlocked it and scrolled through a few things before turning it over and handing it to him. “And I believe she may have gotten involved in helping it pass.”

Anakin, confused, only took the pad and looked at it. There was a message from that Senator Rafeel, marked as important, sent to not only Padmé, but to every single senator in the Senate. Including the Chancellor.

_“Good evening fellow Senators of this great Republic,_

_Apologies for this late notice, but I fear I have received some grave news. It is not important to discuss, but as of this moment I will be abdicating my role as Senator of Aquaris and passing the title to my niece Chirus until there is one properly voted upon. Chirus has been training under me for nearly two decades now and will fill the role wonderfully in the absence of a voted-upon Senator._

_I hope you can forgive me as I traverse these trying times of leaving behind my life’s work and returning to my home to aid in the issue presented to me. This is my formal resignation.”_

Anakin’s eyes scrunched. He’s…never seen a resignation before. Was this normal? The text seemed a bit vague, but by now he expected it from a Senator. He shrugged and lifted the pad back to her. “It seems like a resignation. How could Ahsoka be involved in this anyway?”

Padmé simply scrolled to the left, opening a new message and pushing the pad back to him. Anakin sighed and leaned back in his chair. This was not how he expected this night to go. At first he was confused. It was another message from the now former Senator Rafeel. This time, there was very little text.

_“Senators of the Grand Republic,_

_Do not be deceived. My uncle was no righteous man. He will be facing punishment when he returns to Aquaris, I can assure you that._ ”

Anakin was shocked by the rough display in the text. The signature that had been Rafeel’s was now replaced with his niece’s name – Chirus – at the bottom. Below that were various attachments. Anakin opened one and saw various credit transfers to a specific account, each amount around the same tens of thousands range. The next was a correspondence with someone only named “Bravo”. Rafeel would say a name and a day, “Bravo” would respond with what Anakin recognized as a monetary amount. This happened four times within the span of six years. The attachment after that showed four men, three being Chuhkyvi and one being human, with each one labeled with the date they were found dead, their cause of death, and their connection with Rafeel. Each Chuhkyvi was labelled as, “Opponent” while the human was deemed, “Law Enforcement.” The Senator was ordering hits out on those against him.

The next attachment showed a new interaction. One with the tag of “Moonlighter”. Rafeel explained that he needed this done. But he couldn’t let her see. “Bravo” was no longer working with him and he needed his done soon. “Moonlighter” simply asked who.

_“Chirus Honchi.”_

_“Isn’t that your daughter?”_

_“Niece, yes. I need her taken care of.”_

_“How and when?”_

_“The how doesn’t matter. Just make it look like an accident._

_I need it done by the week’s end.”_

_“Bit soon for this to be done.”_

_“She’s getting too comfortable with the other Senators._

_Getting too close to what I do to keep my power._

_Are you doing it or what?”_

After “Moonlighter” send confirmation and baking information, the final attachment showed the same amount of money being put into a bank account attached to Chirus Honchi’s name.

“After Senator Chirus outed her uncle,” Padmé explained, “Some footage anonymously leaked of Rafeel meeting with Bhada Cha – a known bounty hunter from the lower levels. It was shot from a high perch, one very difficult to access without certain advantages.”

Anakin took all this in for a second, trying to piece everything together slowly while trying to form the picture of what happened in just a week of him being gone. He set the pad down, which allowed her to take it and set it to the side before looking at him. She didn’t seem angry, merely…curious. Which was good. He didn’t want to deal with angry right now, especially if he was going to need to confront Ahsoka about this.

And that is exactly what he did. The following morning, after talking through everything with Padmé once more then slipping out before the Coruscant sun rose, Anakin made his way back to the Jedi Temple. Slipping in and out had gotten easier during the years, but things had changed when Ahsoka came into the picture. They had to share a somewhat-apartment now. This left sneaking out and in while someone had higher levels of hearing than you very difficult. There were times where Ahsoka did catch him leaving, and he had to come up with some sort of lie to keep her placated. Which usually worked, especially since she was always half asleep whenever he did it.

He got to their apartment and knocked on her door. No answer. He pressed his palm into the button and the door pulled up to show an empty room. Her lightsabers were gone, which means she took them, and her communicator was off, meaning she was in one of two places. The Room of a Thousand Fountains, or the Training Hall. And knowing that his Snips wouldn’t be caught dead in the Room with it probably being filled with early-morning Jedi, he hurried to the Training Hall.

When he arrived, she was deflecting blaster bolts to the wall behind the firing system the trainers had rigged. She was still holding both sabers in that backwards grip, flourishing both green blades to volley the bolt back to sender. In their two years working together, Anakin was proud to see her improve in her lightsaber abilities. Even with the second one implemented at a younger age, she adapted and grew stronger because of it. And he was thankful for that, considering he built it for her in the first place because he was always worried about her getting shot.

The machine whirred to a stop and Ahsoka panted, withdrawing her lightsaber and teased, “If you’re going to keep staring, I may just ask you to leave.” Even from the corner of the room, Anakin could see the smirk on her face.

“You wound me, Snips,” He feigned, placing a hand on his chest as he leaned against the wall. “I come here to surprise you with my early return and this is the welcome I get?”

She barked out a short laugh and called a towel to her hand, letting the Force pull it to her as she hook her weapons to her belt. This use of the Force would be seen as “unnecessary” and a “gross misuse of the power.” But Anakin did the same thing when he stepped out of the ‘fresher, so he didn’t say anything. Ahsoka turned to him and walked up, patting around her fact and neck to dry up the sweat. “You’re actually back _on time_ for once.” She smiled up at him, a mischievous sparkle in her eyes. “What, did the command bot surrender after hearing you monologue about your pod-racing days again?”

Anakin rolled his eyes and smirked a bit at her. “I’ll have you know it was a very successful mission with little casualties. The people are Durkteel were very pleased with our efforts.” He puffed out his chest for emphasis and Ahsoka gagged before chuckling at him.

The idea of the Aquaris Senator’s downfall being brought on by Ahsoka slammed into his head again as she tossed the towel to the side. He couldn’t outright ask her, she would never tell him. At least, that’s what she did whenever he asked something _mundane_. “Hey Snips did you eat today?” _Probably._ “Ahsoka did you get any sleep between missions?” _Enough to keep going on this one._ And his personal favorite, “Ahsoka where did you hide my lightsaber?” _Wow, you lost it again Skyguy? Isn’t a Jedi’s lightsaber their life?_ _Wait till I tell Obi-wan…_

“So, Ahsoka,” She looked up at him as he peeled away from the wall. “How was your week while I was gone? Were you able to visit Senator Amidala?”

“Yeah,” She said, walking ahead and out of the room as he followed right beside her. They were heading to the Mess. Ahsoka always ate right after training. Something that never made sense to him, considering the smell most people get after hard exercise. Ahsoka included. “She was really busy with this important bill, though. I stayed for the first debate but didn’t go to any other ones.” She smiled at a youngling passing bye then looked ahead.

She wasn’t lying. He could feel that much through their Bond. But she also wasn’t telling him everything. “Oh? Why’s that?” He hated taking this stealth approach of finding out answers. He much preferred asking them straight out then demanding the answer from them when they usually didn’t reply. But he’s known Ahsoka long enough to realize that that wouldn’t work. In the years that she’s grown more skilled and powerful, she also grew more distant. This included telling him a wide variety things. Things that could include setting up a Senator to relinquish his role in the Republic Senate.

“I didn’t want to bother her,” She shrugged, “The bill seemed really important. Something about bounty hunters. I didn’t want to get her distracted from her work.”

Again she wasn’t lying, but she wasn’t telling the whole truth. It was something that politicians did, something that he knew Ahsoka picked up from Padmé. Tell only a bit of the truth so you didn’t expose everything, but you didn’t lie about anything either. And she was getting good at it.

“Interesting.” He mused, folding his arms behind his back. “Did you do anything else other than seeing the Senator? Did you visit Barriss or anything?” He looked down at her, and her eyes went to the side as she thought

“No, Barriss is off-world. Since she was Knighted she’s been a bit busy lately.” She explained. She was telling the truth there. She hummed a bit before shrugging again, “I can’t think of anything too exciting that happened.”

Boom. There it was. Like a little red flag in his mind, he felt the oily lie wave onto him through their Bond. Ahsoka must have noticed, because she explained, “But maybe it’s just because I’m tired from the training.” The truth melted the lie from its sticky spot but he knew what he felt.

“You know you can tell me whatever, right?” He insisted, nudging her playfully. “I promise I won’t tell the Council on you.” He smirked, trying to weasel his way into getting his answers.

“It’s nothing, Master,” She pulled his rank, looking up at him. The playfulness was gone and she looked ahead as she began to walk faster. “Nothing to concern you of, anyway.” Anakin paused and watched her walk down, seeing her take the corner to the Mess and onwards.

Well…kark. That didn’t go as planned. Anakin rubbed the back of his neck, awkwardly standing in the middle of the Temple corridor and still looking at the hallway she just walked down. He sighed and turned, walking quickly to their dorm. He tried doing it the nicer way. Now, it was time to do it the Skywalker way.

Ahsoka came back to the dorm around an hour later, stretching and yawning as she stepped in. She walked right past him sitting on the couch in their living space and to her dorm. He quickly stood and called out, “Ahsoka, wait.” It wasn’t a request. Ahsoka paused and turned to him, confusion in her eyes.

“Yes, Master?”

Anakin walked up to her and held out a datapad, showing her the same things Padmé had shown him last night. “Did you do this?” He asked simply, staring at her.

When she took the pad from him, her shields locked up tight. She could usually be wide open about nearly everything to him, so when she was locking up, he knew it was because something was wrong. Ahsoka scrolled through everything, looking at every piece of information. She looked at him, an appearance of shock on her face.

“Anakin, why would I-”

“Ahsoka I’m not mad.” He explained, taking the pad from her and inching closer. “I just need to know what you did.”

He watched her swallowed for a second before she looked him in the eyes, saying. “I took care of a problem. Just like you would.”

That caught him off guard. Sure, Anakin handled a fair share of corrupt leaders, but…would he really do something like this? He thought back for a few minutes before realizing, yes. Yes he would expose the Senator. After having his own method of questioning, of course, to see if there were others like him that he knew of. Or to simply stop his little posse from opposing his wife’s work.

“Okay.” He explained, tossing the pad onto the couch. He looked back at her and said, “Explain what you did. Just so I have a clear picture.”

His Padawan sighed, rubbing her forehead, before explaining, “I went to see Senator Amidala the second day you were gone. I joined her for the debate. She and Senator Organa loudly displaying the need for this bill to pass. But that Senator, Honchi, was belittling them. Calling them cowards and fools, telling them that bounty hunters do not deserve to be persecuted simply because of their occupation. That, how would they feel if they were thrown in prison because they attempted to pass a policy.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “It was ridiculous, and the Chancellor didn’t stop him! I understand that each person has a right to speak on the floor of the Senate, but…Force I just wished he would shut up!”

Ahsoka sighed and looked away, “During the debate…I noticed his niece. She looked super uncomfortable. Like she couldn’t believe what her uncle was saying. It was weird that he was defending these sleemos to such an extent that it rallied others behind his backwards beliefs.” She looked back at him, explaining, “So, I researched him. I looked into everything that could ever be for him. His elections, his bills, his policies, his family life – everything. Something wasn’t right…it clicked when I found out the last three opponents he had for his Senatorial spot were all found dead under mysterious circumstances.

“During another debate, I was able to take his communicator and trace his calls and connections. Every time one of his opponents was found dead, he had contacted the same number three to four days before. It was a number only labelled, “Bravo.” I talked to his niece about the theory I had, and she didn’t believe me.” Ahsoka chuckled, if not a bit darkly, before she continued while looking away. “I told her to look and find “Bravo” in his contacts. To see what was recently said…she came to me the next day and showed me those messages.” She gestured to the data pad. “According to her, it caused a huge fight between them when she was caught looking through his stuff. At one point he had threatened her…so I decided to lay a trap.”

“You were Moonlighter.” Anakin concluded, looking at her with surprise. She nodded, still not meeting his intense but shocked gaze.

“He told “Bravo” about the newest hit on his niece, but he wouldn’t do it. So I initiated the contact under the pretense that I worked with “Bravo.” That he could trust me. I had him wire the money directly to Chirus after getting the details. Afterwards, I paid him a visit at this mysterious “Moonlighter.” And warned him that if he wouldn’t relinquish his place in the Senate to his niece and return to Aquaris, all the information would be leaked.” She shrugged and looked up at him finally. “And you know the rest.”

Anakin was silent for a moment, blinking and looking at her. How had she done this within a week? When did she even learn to do any of this? Sure, he used some manipulation tactics on others to get what he needs done, but nothing to this extreme. Before he could stop himself, he simply asked, “But why?” She tilted her head to the side, confused, and he reiterated, “Why did you care so much about this bill that you exposed this Senator?”

Ahsoka was quiet for a moment, before simply saying, “It was never about the bill. It was about the fact that he disrespected Senator Amidala and was getting away with it…and I wasn’t going to let that happen to her.”

Anakin decided that maybe Ahsoka and Padmé were spending a bit too much time together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not entirely pleased with this chapter, but I really don't want to write each one as "This is the scenario, how does Ahsoka solve it?" So I'm trying different viewpoints and secondary-perspectives. Please tell me what you think and thank all of you for the wonderful comments! It makes me so happy to see people like what I write, it makes me inspired to write more!


	5. Barriss and the Reality of Command

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Master Unduli’s words make a harder impact on Barriss than she intends, and Ahsoka is there to lift up her friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please read the notes at the end for a quick announcement!

_“Your recent mission had hundreds of losses, Barriss.”_

_“Yes, Master.” Barriss nodded, unable to look up at the hologram of Master Unduli. The older woman’s arms crossed before her chest as she looked down with disapproval._

The soft murmuring around the Jedi Temple’s Library only increased her sink into her memory. Barriss’ eyes remained on the final report from her failed expedition that she had yet to send to the Council. The words blurring together on the bright screen as she focused the number of deceased, both trooper and civilian. While her head rested on her right hand, her left laid in her lap – clenched tightly and digging her dark nails into her palm.

_“Any why was that, Barriss?” Her voice was coarse, uncaring. The younger Mirialan couldn’t quiet pinpoint the direction she was taking, but she could obviously assume it would not be a kind one._

_“The information regarding the fortress was outdated, Master, and faulty. When I tried a different vantage point that I believed would be easier on my men, we found that it was more exposed than what was described.” She responded, evening her tone despite her heavy heart beating quicker and heat rising to her cheeks._

She heard a distinct voice near her before dimming back down to the background. The tablet she had been so fixated on to get this assignment over with entered a sleep mode to preserve its energy, thus turning the screen black. It left Barriss to view her own reflection in the electronic, as she felt that same heat rise to her face and her eyes start to water.

_“So it was the information’s fault?” Master Unduli asked with an incredulous tone. Barriss still didn’t dare peek. She knew the Master was getting more and more impatient. She also knew that the Master wanted an explanation for the losses, not an excuse._

_“No, Master Unduli, it was not.” She stated, still keeping her head bowed. “It was my own incompetence in the situation that I lead those men to their deaths.”_

The voice got closer, and thus louder, but it sounded muffled. As if cotton plugged her ears and headphones covered them from her hearing anything but the judging voice of her former Master and the screams of her fallen men. The tears began to slide down her cheeks and splash onto the pad beneath her. She brought her other hand up to hold her head as she leaned forward.

_There was a sigh. “You cannot make mistakes like this anymore, Barriss. You are not a Padawan.”_

_“I know, Master Unduli.”_

_“Your choices have consequences. And most times those consequences you face are death, but not of your own.”_

_“Yes, Master Unduli.”_

_Another sigh before there was a clearing of a throat. Commander Gree must have entered. Barriss couldn’t tell, she still didn’t dare look up at the Jedi Master she so revered. She couldn’t stand to see the disappointment that was so clearly in her voice plastered on the woman’s face._

_“I have to go now, Barriss. But I will contact you later upon my mission’s completion to continue this discussion with you.” Master Unduli finally spoke once more. The seconds between the last few words feeling like centuries to the younger of the two._

_“Yes, Master Unduli. May the Force be with you on this expedition.” Barriss said, bowing low and reaching forward to turn off the communication hub._

_“And you, my former apprentice.” There was silence for a second between them, as Barriss reached the final button to end the stream. “I expect much better from you in the future.”_

“Barriss!” The young Jedi Knight jumped in her spot, feeling the hair on the back of her neck stand up as she automatically wiped the tears from her eyes. She placed her hands in her lap and turned back in to the noise around her. There was whispering she could distinctly hear referencing to her, but she could also hear very close breathing.

She turned to the left and looked up at the worried, but shocked, Ahsoka Tano that practically hovered around her.

“Oh, Ahsoka,” She cleared her throat, pushing her emotions out into the Force to bring peace into her heart. The Force teased her, however, and decided to only placate the pain for a moment while the discriminating words of her former Master and the screams of her men played in her mind like a loop. “Apologies, I had not seen you.” She sniffled, cursing silently that her nose was plugged, but put on a smile as she met the Togruta’s eyes. “Are you well?”

“I’m…” she stopped for a moment, looking at her friend’s eyes with a deep frown on her dark lips. “I’m okay.” She said before she pulled out the seat beside her, closing in on the space Barriss very much wanted. Barriss deserved to be alone, after all. She brought death and destruction to so many people… “Barriss is something going on?” Her voice caused Barriss to jump as her mind soaked into a darker depression and she looked at the girl not too much younger than her. What, were they separated by only a year? Or was it two? And yet the only other thing that separated them was ranking? A rank that Barriss didn’t even deserve?

“I’m alright, Ahsoka.” She smiled softly again, the strain of holding up this façade hurting her cheeks. She hated lying. But she didn’t deserve Ahsoka’s pity. She deserved to feel pained and hurt from her failure.

She was a failure.

Ahsoka’s frown stuck on her face, and her bright blue eyes were darting around. As if scanning Barriss’ face. _She wouldn’t understand._ The same part of her brain that replayed the earlier conversation relayed to her. _She’s just a Padawan. She didn’t lead innocents and men to their deaths. You did. You’d disgust her._

“Barriss-” Ahsoka started before Barriss herself stood, collecting the data pad. She smoothed out her skirt, her hand brushing the cool metal of her lightsaber. The touch of the chill smothered her brain as her own blade igniting was added to the orchestra of screams, cries, and blaster fire.

“I apologize, Ahsoka, I have things to attend to.” She smiled again, pulling it high and taut. Her face hurt like a bantha. Was smiling really that hard to do? Or was it the fact that she physically knew it was a lie? “Perhaps we can talk another time?” She questioned, beginning to take a few steps away to cut the conversation short to prevent Ahsoka from acting.

The hand grabbing her elbow made Barriss freeze in mid-step and she stared forward as Ahsoka started to speak. “Barriss,” She started, her voice hushed as more eyes started turning to watch them. Younglings, Padawans, Knights, Masters, even some Sentinels looked at them. It felt like there were multiple sniper crosshairs pointed at her – focusing in, studying every blink or twitch, trying to see any kind of reaction from the usually stoic woman.

_They’re judging you. They have every right to. You failed the Order. You failed the men, women, and children of that world. You failed your men. You. Failed._

“You can talk to me about anything,” Ahsoka continued, her hand gripping her elbow a bit tighter. She was certain Ahsoka meant it as a sign of comfort and comradery, but it made Barriss feel trapped. Like she couldn’t get away. She just wanted to get away. “I’m hear to listen. I understand.”

“No, Ahsoka,” Barriss answered, the tears building back up in her eyes as those screams came back. Joined by the yelling of her men. The absolute hatred in her Master’s voice. “You can’t.”

“Well, we don’t know unless you tell me.” Ahsoka shot back. Why was she being so pushy? Why couldn’t she just leave her alone? _She deserved to be alone_. She was also still holding onto her elbow. It felt like a lead weight dragging her arm down. “Let’s just sit down and talk-”

“There isn’t anything to _talk_ about, Ahsoka!” Barriss snapped, pulling her arm away and spinning to face her. The tears started falling down, embarrassment made her cheeks flare to a light green blush across her cheeks. She now gripped the datapad with a tight hand wrapped around it’s edge while the one she had been grabbing was pulled as far away from her as possible. What was she trying to do? Belittle her? Mock her for her failure? Had her failure in the mission already spread through the Temple? Barriss understood that rumors and talk of the Temple were practically a currency to the Jedi, but even this was quick for the work of the rumor mills and gossip spreaders.

“Woah, Barriss,” Ahsoka raised her hands defensively, shock displaying in her eyes as she continued to look into her friend’s. “Calm down.”

“Calm down? _Calm down?_ ” The Mirialan reiterated with exasperation. More eyes were watching her, but now, she was so angry she decided they would get a show. Shifting the datapad into her other hand, she jabbed a finger at the Togruta who instinctively took a step back. “How dare you tell me to calm down after what happened!”

“I’m…” Ahsoka stumbled for words, looking at her friend and trying to assess the best way to go about this. Obi-wan would be good right about now. He can walk in on situations that don’t ask for him, but when he’s actually needed, he decides not to show. So, she relied on something Anakin mentioned to her in the beginning of her apprenticeship: What Would Obi-wan Do? Basically, take what you think the great Jedi Master would do…and put your own twist on it because Anakin Skywalker does what Anakin Skywalker wants (most of the time). “Barriss, I just want to help.” She finally settled on, lowering her arms a bit.

“You want to help?” The older asked incredulously, anger flaring in her and her cheeks burning hotter. The tears still fell, and she didn’t know if it was from the pain or from the rage. “You really want to help?” She took a step closer, eyes narrowing at the girl before her.

“Yes,” Ahsoka said softly, finally taking notice of the crowd they were drawing to them. Master Jocasta Nu would not be happy about this disruption in her library. “Yes, Barriss, that’s all I want to do.” She confirmed, noticing the bags under her eyes, the burning cheeks, the tears. The Knight looked…broken. “All I want to do is help.”

“Then help by leaving me _alone_.” Barriss nearly hissed the final word, her vision blurring as the tears blocked her sight. The grip on the datapad was tightening ever more. _Alone. Alone. She deserved to be left alone. She just wanted to be alone. Alone to suffer._

Ahsoka looked almost deflated for a moment, and if she Barriss didn’t know any better, she would assume that her headtails were actually bending down like a feline’s ears. She had started again, unwilling to just step back and _listen_ , “But, Barriss-”

The anger hurt like a fire, and finally, it burst out as if it ignited a cannon. Barriss slammed the datapad onto the table they still stood beside, certain that the screen had cracked in her fury. She pulled the hand that held it away and jabbed a finger into her chest. “That is an _order_ Padawan Tano!”

The silence encompassing the library made the point stand even taller. The whispering observers now stopped, and the persistent Ahsoka only stared at her in shock. Taking this as a good time to go, Barriss whirled around on her heels and stormed out of the library. The cape attached to her hoodie fluttering behind her and creating a distance between whoever would want to follow, so long as they would have a fear of another outburst from the Knight simply for stepping on the fabric.

After Barriss left, the library took a few moments to begin chattering again and returning to their previous engagements. Ahsoka could hear nearly everything being discussed. How some felt the outburst was unwarranted. How others thought that Ahsoka should have taken the hint. How some were just trying to study Mando’a for once and they thought the library was a place for _silence_.

The frown on the Togruta’s face only deepened and grew, and she felt her breathing slow to return as her heartbeat echoed in her lekku. Her eyes looked over to the table, seeing the datapad left behind that Mirialan. Ahsoka pulled out the seat that Barriss had previously sat in, pulling the tablet to her and activating it. It was password protected. Ahsoka looked over at the doors that Barriss had left through just moments ago.

With a sigh, Ahsoka only hoped that Barriss would forgive her at some other time, and began to type into the pad.

It was hours later that Barriss finally began to realize that she had mistreated Ahsoka.

Her outburst in anger had led to a disciplinary meeting with the Council. Master Unduli appeared in the meeting as well, only to observe with judgement and disappointment. Master Windu had informed her that her rage was not fitting for a Knight. That the loss of men was something that made a heart heavier, but it was not the proper reaction for a Jedi. Surprisingly, that was the nicest thing said by the Masters at the meeting.

Master Unduli asked for a Probationary Period, one where Barriss would be observed as if she were a Padawan again by her former Master until the time where she is seen fit to continue as a Knight. It was then that Barriss watched everything she worked so hard to achieve was beginning to crumble.

In a vote 2 to 9, Barriss was placed on the Probationary Period under her former Master with a stipulation to meet with either Master Yoda or a mind healer once a week to work through her anger and learn to suppress it. Despite the fact that Master Yoda had voted for her not to be placed on this Probation, she decided to work with the mind healers. She wouldn’t be able to live with the shame of needing to sit before Master Yoda like a Youngling and discuss how one should release emotions to the Force again and again.

When the meeting dismissed, Master Yoda had only a few words to impart onto Barriss. “Strength in friendship, there is.” He said, smiling softly at her, as if he were a great-great-great-grandfather to her. “In the support of a friend, a kind of solace one may find.”

With those words to linger on her, Barriss sat in her room. Her back leaning against the wall as she sat on the floor, her worshipping statue turned away from her. She felt it’s judging eyes the second she had sat to meditate, as instructed by Master Unduli, and felt too weak to withstand it. Her hood and cloak now cast away onto the floor, her headwrap pulled back and her short hair out, Barriss looked up and silently stared at the ceiling. Everything around her was silent, but in her mind, there was a typhoon of hatred and pain.

The screams of her men and the innocent were now accompanied by the harsh words from the Council and her Master. The disappointment in their eyes haunted her memories, and the way Master Unduli had turned away from her after ordering the meditation felt colder than most planets. It hurt. Everything hurt. But the fact that Ahsoka’s look of worry and sadness was surrounding that seemed to hurt more. For while she had to prove herself to the Council and her Master time and time again, Ahsoka had shown her nothing but support and kindness. Ahsoka was the only one who was with her in the tank on Geonosis, the only one who showed hope in their survival – even when she could sense her Master’s resignation of her life.

Ahsoka had shown her nothing but acceptance, and she threw her away.

Barriss rocked her head forward and back, slamming the back of it into the wall with a hard thud. “Ow.” She muttered, wincing a bit and reaching up to rub it before she heard a knock at her door.

“Barriss?” Ahsoka’s voice called out. The Mirialan stared at the door, shocked the Togruta would not just walk in like she usually had in the past. Even when she had complained about it Ahsoka wouldn’t knock to come in, she would walk in and expect the complaining but smile through it. But Barriss wouldn’t answer back.

“I know you’re in there, I can sense it.” She spoke again, her voice not rising above her speaking tone. “I just want to talk…But I won’t come in unless you open the door.”

Barriss stood up and walked to the door, considering pressing the panel beside her to let her in. But she lingered. Her hand hovered over the mechanism and she squeezed her eyes tight as tears slid. The same haunting look projected in her mind as she hesitated.

“You left your datapad at the library.” Ahsoka continued. Barriss froze. In high emotions she left it behind. She had locked it, of course, “And I’m sorry if you get mad but…I unlocked it.” Oh kark. Right. She was talking about Ahsoka. Someone who could be considered a mechanical genius had her Master not been Anakin Skywalker. But when had that genius extended to more technological things? “And…I read the report.”

Silence again came as Barriss felt her heart slam into her chest at a quicker pace than it had all day. Ahsoka had read it. An unedited, compromising report that was only met for the Council to assess her absolute failure of a mission. Every death, every mistake, completely broadcasted in that report without any explanation that Barriss could give that could save her friend’s perception of her.

“And…I’m sorry you had to go through that.” Ahsoka began again, startling Barriss slightly as it pulled her from her thoughts very violently. “I…” Silence again, and Barriss thought that she could hear some sort of whispering that she couldn’t make out. It was Ahsoka’s voice, but she couldn’t make it out completely. Soon, though, she continued, “I can’t say I know exactly what’s happening. What you’re feeling…But I know I can say I did something similar.”

Barriss looked at the door, picturing Ahsoka holding the datapad and staring down at it while she spoke. “When I first started commanding the troopers, I was arrogant and trying to prove to them that I was their superior. That they were supposed to listen to me, regardless of the fact that I had way less experience than I did.” A soft sigh and Barriss leaned her forehead onto her door. “Over Ryloth, I lead some of our best pilots to a trap and refused to pull back. I had to prove to them, and to Master Skywalker, that I belonged. That I could handle command…I ended up getting almost all of them killed.” Another paused, this time, followed by a shaky breath. “I could still hear their screaming days later. I had failed those men, I had failed my Master, and I had failed the Council because of my arrogance.”

Silence befell them once again, and she heard a clink against her door. She pictured Ahsoka pressing her head against the door too, her headdress making that clinking sound as Ahsoka continued her tale. “I was a failure, and I felt like that for so long. Master Skywalker couldn’t change my mind, despite everything he or any one else he tried to get to say.” Barriss could picture Master Skywalker trying to gather as many of their men together to try and bring Ahsoka up in spirits. The 501st was always close like that, but she could also see how some of them didn’t exactly want to participate in something like that after they witnessed the death of their ‘brothers’.

“It was only after Geonosis,” Ahsoka was concluding, speaking up a bit after her voice cracked. Was she crying too? “After I met you, that I realized…I could be greater. I could become better. I could lead my men and become an even greater Jedi. I had to think outside of myself and outside of the mission. I had to think about who this was affecting…and after those brain worm things…” Another long suffering sigh.

“Barriss, you taught me that there is something that I can do to make myself better. I’ll always be thankful for that…” Ahsoka said, her voice lighter. As if she were now smiling. “I’m so happy to be your friend. And when you’re ready to talk, when you want to discuss the world, the war, or anything out side of it…” Barriss heard something clinking against the door near the ground. “I put my personal comm line into your pad. You can reach me nearly at any time there. Just…don’t try calling in the middle of the night, okay? I would like to sleep sometimes.” A light chuckle came before silence settled again.

A few moments passed and Barriss heard footsteps fading away from the outside of her room. She finally opened it up and looked out. Ahsoka was long gone. In her place rested only Barriss’ datapad, broken screen and all. She sighed a bit, a little bit of light making her chest feel like as she considered something. Ahsoka could break into her locked pad but not fix the screen?

Barriss grabbed the device and walked back into her room, letting the door close behind her as she opened it up. It immediately opened a document that only showed a picture that both she and Ahsoka were starring in. It had been after the Geonosian Brain Worms. They were both still sitting in their medical beds, the camera closest to Ahsoka as she smiled wide and Barriss was giving a courteous but small smile and wave to the viewer. In the corner, she recognized the Togruta’s handwriting.

Along with the set of numbers to directly contact her, Ahsoka had left a small note: _“To the friend I never expected to make: I hope we can talk soon.”_

Barriss stared at the picture shared before she grabbed her commlink, tears without the sadness falling down her cheeks slowly. Had she not cried enough? Inputting the numbers, she allowed the number to ring for a few seconds before it was answered by a quick: “Tano.”

“Hello Ahsoka,” Barriss said, a small smile settling onto her, “I hope I am not disturbing your sleep.”

A bit of silence before a laugh and, “Never Barriss, never.” And as the Mirialan smiled more at the voice of her friend, Ahsoka asked, “So, what do you want to talk about?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all, MR0407 here. 
> 
> I've had a few people asking about updates and such and I'm here to let you now that I am now planning to update this story, Protectiveness, and my new story, A Shift in Destiny, simultaneously (if that's the right word?). From now on, on every Monday/Tuesday one of these two stories will be updated until they are finished. For this week, we updated Protectiveness with a slightly sappier story (despite my hatred for Barriss) and next week ASD will be updated. 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, please let me know what you think in the comments and also please check out my other story to see how Anakin is handling fatherhood. Here's a hint: He wants to retire haha.


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